I've always looked out for those Hive Engine tokens that pay a regular dividend in #HIVE tokens. It seems like a common sense way to passively increase my holdings over time while investing in community projects. But not all tokens are equal, and it's worth investigating...
EDIT: The math was off! It's all relative and nothing really changes, but I forgot to convert the HIVE to USD before I divided the stack value. It should be good now. My apologies.
I won't go down too deep. And I can only look at the tokens which made it on to my radar... there could be others, and I would love to hear about them in the comments. Please do let me know.
We should cover a few easy ground rules: these are Hive income tokens, but I do have one on this list which distributes SWAP.HIVE-- basically the same thing... and I would also consider a token that pays an HBD dividend, although I haven't found one.
Image c/o Annie Spratt on Unsplash.
And the main idea here is obviously to compare these income #tokens, so it only makes sense to have a few basic metrics to apply in each case. Then it should be apparent whether there are any clear winners and losers.
So How Do We Compare Income Tokens?
I'll be using three different criteria:
THE INCOME... No-brainer, right? I take the annual income I would make based on the most recent dividend, and I divide it by the value of my current token stack. Easy math.
PRICE PERFORMANCE... I try to give a relative scale for how volatile the token's price has been over the last quarter, as well as the token's relative value performance. Is it up or down, or has it remained somewhat stable over the last three months?
AND LIQUIDITY... Sometimes overlooked, there can be wide gaps between the buy and sell prices of tokens... or no buyers at all if you ever want to exit the investment. That is what is called "low liquidity", and something to consider avoiding.
I hope this is straightforward enough to make it digestible, but also robust enough that we have some varying and interesting results to consider.
So let's get into it!
The List of Hive Income Tokens...
The ones I know about are also all in my wallet, which is how I can make the necessary dividend calculations. They are EDSI, INCOME, DAB, BRO, LGN, SPI and BBH.
I'll mention right away that I would've included the DRIP token until recently, when it suspended its HIVE dividend. The project will be focusing only on Splinterlands now, and it has already begun distributing only SPS and DRIP tokens.
I'm not saying that it's a bad investment now... there are plenty of projects worth looking at! But we're talking about Hive income tokens only, so DRIP went and jumped off this particular list.
1- DAB, or Daily Dab
Yes, number one does mean the winner. Do your own analysis though... this is not investment advice, and I am not a financial professional. Just making productive conversation.
DAB takes the gold because it checks all three boxes nicely: the HIVE income is roughly 36% annually, its chart performance has been less volatile than others and the DAB price has been somewhat stable-- but I think it could be a future gainer. And it has fairly high liquidity, so selling would be quick and painless.
I've included one chart screenshot below for the #DAB token to illustrate what I mean by lower volatility and high liquidity, but you can check the others out if you're curious.
The 
Pretty cool. And it takes the crown for now!
2- EDSI, or Eddie Earner Income
This runner-up slot was a close one... but the EDSI token from 
EDSI is earning me around 16% annually in Hive income, a clear second best. Its chart performance is a little volatile, but nothing too jarring... and it has increased in value over the past quarter. The liquidity could be a bit tighter, but there seems to be lots of supply and demand. I'll take it... and the Eddie Earner Income token will take the silver medal this time around!
3- LGN, or Legion
This token was in the running for second place, but its price performance has lagged.
It has the third highest HIVE income distribution anyway, at around 14% annually. It has also been a bit more volatile than EDSI, and it has lost more of its value over the same time period. But LGN tokens have decent liquidity, as I said, which is why third place seems fitting.
The LGN token, issued by 
4- BBH, or Bitcoin Backed Hive
This is two posts in a row in which I'm talking about the #BBH token... so you know it must be good! And it's the only token on this list that distributes SWAP.HIVE, as I mentioned.
But it deserves to be in the fourth spot! My BBH holdings are paying me around 10% annually, and its price performance has been relatively stable... although it has decreased a bit in value in the past few months. Its liquidity is pretty high too, so there isn't much to complain about.
Created using my own likeness, Bitmoji and Canva Pro.
The 
5/6- BRO, or Brocoin
I went back and forth, but this is the one spot that I honestly can't settle on. The BRO token, issued by 
The HIVE income, however, is much lower than the #INCOME token below. It sits around 4% based on my current stack and the most recent dividend. And the BRO price hasn't had a great quarter. I still just feel like this particular token is more of a good value play right now... instead of something I may lose faith in.
Again: not investment advice. I could be wrong about any or all of this. 🙄
5/6- INCOME, or Income Miner
This really was a close one! A much better return than BRO, but some volatility as well, and its lower liquidity helped to clinch the tie. I want to say that this income token-- c/o 
The HIVE income really is not bad at all: around 9% as I write this. And although it has actually gained some value this past quarter, the INCOME price swings are more aggressive and it just feels more volatile than BRO's chart. Its supply and demand aren't bad, but the liquidity gap is wider than I would like.
7- SPI, or the SPinvest Token
I hate to blatantly label a project "the worst of the bunch", but I'll remind you that I do own a small stack of SPI tokens and I admire the consistency and creativity that I've seen from the 
Except the DRIP token maybe.
Again: I'm kidding! 😜
I still own all of these coins. Calm down.
Having sufficiently softened the blow, here are the SPI metrics: the current HIVE dividend is around 2.5% annually, the price movement is a bit volatile too with a downward slant overall... and SPI has the largest liquidity gap, which makes it much tougher to pull the trigger either way.
In Conclusion...
Holy Shit. I Talk Too Much! That's my conclusion.
Pardon me. That's not untrue, but the real conclusion here is that NOT ALL TOKENS ARE EQUAL... that was my original premise, I think. There are clear winners and losers when you have specific criteria to differentiate between them.
But perhaps the real beauty of this list is that each and every one of these #Hive-Engine tokens have automatic value with the Hive income they produce. I do suggest that you consider any and all dividend tokens as a solid foundation for growth... but do just a little bit of homework. I hope this helps in your search for future winners.
Last time: not a financial professional. Grain of salt.
I'm almost done talking now. I promise.
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